Alamo Colleges District

Bexar CountyDowntown San AntonioEst. 1945

Serving the Bexar County community through its programs and services that help students succeed in acquiring the knowledge and skills needed in today's world. Today, five colleges fulfill this promise with a vast array of courses and 2-year degrees.

The Paris Six: Six SPC students teaching Tex-Mex in Paris

September 20, 2017

Public Relations

Rising hospitality exchange students from Serbia, Mexico, Slovènia and Spain are in Paris this week, discussing the art of Tex-Mex cuisine in classes led by six exchange students and one faculty member from St. Philip’s College.

The classes are part of the college’s international exchange program with partner institution, the Lycee Guillaume Tirel culinary school in Paris. St. Philip’s College students Yolanda Nicole Guerra, Edward Mariano Kelly, Sabrina Perez, Nancy Anne Emma, Ryan Lee Harper and Allison Molly Ansley are in-country to represent the best of American culinary culture during Gastronomy Week in the gastronomy capital of France with college faculty member Chef Patrick Costello.

It’s a familiar role for the college, explained college faculty member Chef Frank Salinas, the faculty member who has led the previous two educational expeditions that have quickly become part of the St. Philip’s College experience for students in both San Antonio and France. The college hosted 15 French culinary students in April for classes with Costello in fish preparation and in Texas Barbecue with award-winning alumni guest Chef Johnny Stewart. Six St. Philip’s College students did very well in the college’s second transatlantic culinary exchange program in September of 2016 with the Lycee Guillaume Tirel culinary school in Paris. The St. Philip’s College students and college faculty member Chef Frank Salinas learned and represented America by sharing foods from Texas with the people of Paris in celebration of the Lycee’s tenth anniversary and France's 2016 Gastronomy Week observances.

The exchange opportunity is for students academically strong enough to travel abroad and return to upper-level hospitality classes without missing a beat, not for members of the general public who desire a cultural exchange opportunity, explained Salinas and Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts program chair Chef Will Thornton. The exchanges in both San Antonio and Paris are an immersion for students in the culture of the hospitality industry, hosted by hospitality practitioners. Salinas and colleague Chef Chris Goloby are teaching Chef Costello's students while the chef is in San Antonio, Salinas and Thornton explained.

The project runs from Sept. 17-29, so if anyone is San Antonio is planning to visit France this month, they might be able to get a taste of the best Texas offers, along with the rest of the world, said Salinas. By global culinary education standards, the exchange is a premier partnership, Salinas explained. The three-year-old exchange originally celebrated the international links the school in Paris has forged, and foreign delegations of students came from Germany, Canada, China, Cuba, Spain, Italy, Mexico, Portugal and San Antonio to support a program that stressed importance of international trade. To that end, college’s alumni from the first class in Paris joined their foreign counterparts by offering typical and traditional commercially successful specialties from their regions. Guerra, Kelly, Emma, Harper, Perez and Ansley are carrying on the tradition.

For details on the exchange program before Chef Costello returns from France, contact Chef Salinas at (210) 486–2311 | jsalinas@alamo.edu

CAPTIONS (Images courtesy Lycee Guillaume Tirel on Instagram): Students from Serbia, Mexico, Slovènia and Spain attend a class at Lycee Guillaume Tirel in Paris to learn Tex-Mex cuisine from five students and one faculty member from St. Philip’s College. The students and faculty members represent American culinary culture during Gastronomy Week, the country of France’s premiere foodie event Sept. 17-29, as guests of partner college Lycee Guillaume Tirel. Standing during the lecture (from left) are college faculty member Chef Patrick Costello and students Edward Kelly, Ryan Harper, Yolanda Guerra and Sabrina Perez.

St. Philip’s College exchange students (from left) Ryan Harper, Nancy Anne Emma, Allison Ansley, Edward Kelly, Yolanda Guerra and Sabrina Perez (far right) are in Paris with college faculty member Chef Patrick Costello (second from right) to represent American culinary culture during Gastronomy Week, the country of France’s premiere foodie event Sept. 17-29, as guests of partner college Lycee Guillaume Tirel.

About the St. Philip’s College’s Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts department: The St. Philip’s College’s Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts department provides five primary programs along with one full-time faculty member and multiple adjunct faculty members to work directly with students in each area. All five programs involve students in classroom-based learning experiences, as well as lab experience, and work-based learning during a practicum course. The culinary arts, baking and pastry arts, and restaurant management programs have been acknowledged with an Exemplary rating from the American Culinary Federation Foundation Accrediting Commission. St. Philip’s College is one of only 25 schools worldwide with the commission’s Exemplary status and is rated Exemplary by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. The St. Philip’s College programs typically graduate 100 students annually. Students graduating from the management programs: Hotel Management, Hospitality Management, and Restaurant Management are eligible to receive Certified Hospitality Graduate (CHG) certifications from the Accrediting Commission for Programs in Hospitality Administration™. Culinary Arts and Baking and Pastry Arts students are eligible for Certification by the American Culinary Federation. The CHG is an industry-recognized professional certification that has been granted to only three hospitality programs in the state of Texas and only one program in the college’s service area. For information on registration in the college’s program, contact the department staff at (210) 486-2315 or book reservations with the staff of the college’s student-operated restaurant by calling (210) 486-2328.